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Casino of Marino
The Casino of Marino, a small but remarkable building that showcases 18th-century design, was one of our most enjoyable and surprising experiences. During the one-hour guided tour, we got to see the elegant world of neoclassical architecture, innovative engineering, and Enlightenment ideals, all found in one of Dublin’s most fascinating hidden gems. The Casino is located in Marino, a northern suburb of Dublin. Despite its name, this building has nothing to do with gambling. The word “casino” comes from Italian and has two meanings: “little house,” which is fitting given the compact size of the building, and “party house,” which represents its true purpose. As you approach through the gates of the surrounding park, the Casino immediately grabs your attention with its perfect symmetry and classical proportions. With its temple-like appearance, Ionic columns, and domed roof, it looks like it belongs in Rome.
The structure features a very decorated exterior, with some statues that represent allegorical and mythological representations. These statues gave the building a more monumental look despite its modest scale. On the top of the building there are two of the four original statues of the casino representing Bacchus and Ceres, respectively the god of wine and the goddess of agricolture and prosperity.
Unfortunately we couldn’t see the other two statues of Neptune and Venus because they were on restoration, due to the erosion of the wind coming from the sea. There are also two urns in the roof of the building, each with other mythological representations. While decorative, these urns were part of a chimney. While there was fire being used to heat or cook, the smoke would come out from the urns. Even the stone steps have secondary features: they are proportioned with care, grounding the Casino’s light and airy silhouette, creating the illusion that it is floating in its green surroundings, but they also engineered, as the guide explained us, to resemble waterfalls on very rainy days, before the water is collected into the cistern.
From the outside, the building appears deceptively simple, small and purely ornamental. However, our guide quickly revealed that this was one of the most cleverly designed buildings of its time.
Commissioned by James Caulfeild, the first Earl of Charlemont, and designed by Sir William Chambers around the 1750s, the Casino was meant to be a pleasure house or garden retreat. Yet despite its modest appearance, it contains 16 rooms cleverly fit within three floors, masked as what seems like a single open chamber. The guided tour was both informative and entertaining, led by a heritage officer who shared architectural insights along with humorous stories. Standing in the entrance hall, our guide pointed out how the columns are hollow to allow for internal drainage, a perfect example of how function can be hidden beneath classical form. Windows look symmetrical from the outside but are actually false or cleverly offset to hide the layout inside.
As we moved through the rooms, including a richly decorated saloon, a kitchen, and several compact bedrooms, we were repeatedly amazed by the architectural tricks used to maintain the illusion of simplicity and symmetry from the outside. The guide explained how doors are disguised as panels, walls are thicker than they appear, and space is used with remarkable efficiency. Every inch of the building was designed with care and precision, from the stucco ceilings to the delicate hand-crafted parquet floors, which were unfortunately covered to prevent damage from visitors. However the original flooring is still present and in some rooms the guide even rised the carpet to let us have a look.
One of the highlights was learning about the influence of the Grand Tour on Lord Charlemont. During his extensive travels across Europe, he developed a deep appreciation for classical architecture and Enlightenment ideas. The Casino was built to express that refined taste and intellectual curiosity. It served not only as a retreat but also as a cultural and architectural exposition.
Though the Casino was completed over two centuries ago, it remains in a pretty good condition thanks to careful preservation efforts, although it still needs some restoration, especially some of the statues.
The tour also included elements such as floor plans and scale models to help visualize the internal structure and the area around the Casino during the 18th century, which greatly improved our understanding of the building’s complexity and gave us a clearer idea of what it was like to stay there at the time.
In conclusion, our visit to the Casino at Marino was a unique and rewarding experience. Despite its size, the building tells a grand story of taste, vision, and clever design. The tour is ideal for everyone: students, curious visitors, architecture enthusiasts, or, as the guide mentioned, students who want to see and study all the elements and details of the structure. We highly recommend it to those looking to discover a lesser-known but deeply impressive part of Dublin’s historical landscape. Large groups need to make a reservation because of the limited space inside.